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Downtown Bend

601 NW Wall St

Library Information

Normal Operating Hours
OpenClose
Sunday9:00 AM6:00 PM
Monday9:00 AM8:00 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM8:00 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM8:00 PM
Thursday9:00 AM8:00 PM
Friday9:00 AM6:00 PM
Saturday9:00 AM6:00 PM

601 NW Wall St
Bend, OR 97703

Phone: (541) 617-7050
Fax: (541) 617-7083

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Quick Links

The Downtown Bend Library was designed by Thomas Hacker and Associates of Portland, Oregon. The two-story, 38,855-square-foot library opened in 1998 and features exposed beams and high ceilings, complemented with eastward-facing windows, looking over Bend’s civic square.

The library’s large children’s area, located on the ground floor, includes an interactive Early Learning Space. You’ll also find a large community space, the Brooks Room, on the first floor that hosts story times for children as well as cultural programs for teens and adults. The second floor of the library houses teen and adult print and digital materials, as well as public computers, a meeting room, and reading and study spaces. Rotating art exhibitions reflect the talent of the local community. Free WiFi is available throughout the building.

Upcoming Events

Full Calendar

  • Mar 29 2023

    9:30 AM - Wednesday - Brooks Room

    Interactive story time with books, songs and rhymes. 0-5 yrs.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Join us for stories, songs, and rhymes designed to support early literacy skill development, social emotional awareness and family engagement. 25 min.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 29 2023

    10:30 AM - Wednesday - Brooks Room

    An active storytime with stories, songs & movement rhymes.  18-36 mo.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Toddlers like to move so this storytime features not only the best stories, but plenty of participation through songs and action rhymes.  Your child will be introduced to letter sounds, vocabulary, and the fun of interacting with you and others.  25 min.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 29 2023

    5:30 PM - Wednesday -

    Discuss The River Why by David James Duncan.
    Join via Zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85899607808

    Questions? Email paigeb@deschuteslibrary.org and pick up the book at your local library.

    Gus Orviston is a young fly fisherman who leaves behind his comically schizoid family to find his own path. Taking refuge in a remote cabin, he sets out in pursuit of the Pacific Northwest's elusive steelhead. But what begins as a physical quarry becomes a spiritual one as his quest for self-knowledge batters him with unforeseeable experiences.

    *zm* *ani*

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  • Mar 30 2023

    9:30 AM - Thursday - Brooks Room

    Interactive story time with books, songs and rhymes. 0-5 yrs.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Join us for stories, songs, and rhymes designed to support early literacy skill development, social emotional awareness and family engagement. 25 min.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 30 2023

    10:00 AM - Thursday - Meyer Classroom

    Explore and research job and career opportunities.

    Actively search and apply for jobs in this hands-on workshop. Learn job searching techniques, research new employment websites, and practice skills that will help you find your next job.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 30 2023

    10:30 AM - Thursday - Brooks Room

    A gentle storytime for infant and caregiver. 0-18 mo.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Babies need to hear stories, right from the beginning. You and your little one will join other families and hear very simple stories, songs and rhymes that will help to build a love of books and words. Only 15 minutes long!

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 30 2023

    1:30 PM - Thursday - Meyer Classroom

    Practice or get help with basic tech tasks and questions.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are recommended at all in-person library events.

    Practice your computer skills and problem-solve with staff. Find answers to your e-reader, tablet and smartphone questions. Free and open to the public. Use a library computer or bring your own laptop or device. No registration required.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 31 2023

    1:00 PM - Friday - Lobby Tutor Room

    Walk-in social services assistance that connects you with resources.This is an in‐person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Connect and get help with housing, medical, mental health, veterans services, social security resources, and more. Thrive Central Oregon staff help you navigate the complex forms, websites, and waitlists needed to access these resources. All appointments are first come first served and last for 30 minutes. For more information visit: www.thrivecentraloregon.org.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Mar 31 2023

    4:00 PM - Friday - Deschutes County Historical Museum

    Get a sneak peak of the exhibit highlighting 20 years of A Novel Idea.

    This is an in-person program.

    Twenty years of ephemera + quilts inspired by Novel Idea selections = an opportunity to recall and remember 20 years of A Novel Idea. Join us for a sneak peak, remarks from library representatives, quilters and museum staff about the role A Novel Idea has played in Deschutes County's cultural scene.

    Light refreshments provided.

    129 NW Idaho, Bend, OR 97701 *ani*

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 1 2023

    9:00 AM - Saturday - Meyer Classroom

    Free Tax Prep Sessions with certified tax volunteers.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    AARP Foundation Tax-Aide is offering free tax preparation sessions for Central Oregonians at the Downtown Bend Public Library. Come to the library to learn more about tax credits and have an IRS-Certified Volunteer prepare your taxes. Taxes are prepared online, using IRS certified software and then electronically transmitted to the IRS. Certified tax volunteers will also be available to answer some your tax questions.

    Walk-in sessions at the Downtown Bend Library are on Saturdays beginning February 4th. For more information visit http://cashoregon.org for a list of items to bring with you to the session.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 1 2023

    10:00 AM - Saturday - Deschutes County Historical Museum

    Explore 20 years of A Novel Idea, curated by our friends at Deschutes County Historical Museum.

    This is an in-person program.

    Show your library card throughout the month of April for free admission.

    Deschutes County Historical Society preserves, promotes and celebrates our shared local history.

    129 NW Idaho, Bend, OR 97701 *ani*

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 1 2023

    3:00 PM - Saturday - Brooks Room

    Explore themes of transformation through dance and story with Renee Gonzalez.

    This is an in-person program.

    Is music one of your best friends? Come and feel the music move you as elemental rhythms provoke a curiosity of spring’s growing spirit. Mother Earth’s rivers, waterfalls, oceans and forests constantly illustrate that change is constant. Can we interpret, discover and enjoy within our life’s cyclical themes of change? How does stillness, silence and sound teach you to listen for answers often offered to your questions in nature? Renee will encompass this theme of transformation, personal and integrative, through a dialogue of expressive movements, traditional and contemporary.

    Renee Gonzalez grew up in Los Angeles and Orange County, California. She studied in Colima, Mexico, and then completed a bilingual cross-cultural language internship through California State University Fullerton. She taught elementary school in Santa Ana, on the Pala reservation, and in a dual language program in San Clemente. In 2007, Renee and her family moved to Bend and she began teaching English language development and mainstream classes at Jewell. She also taught in the dual immersion program at Bear Creek Elementary for six years. Now Renee is inspired to develop a culturally responsive arts-integrated curriculum for LCA’s Raices program and Amiguitos summer club. She studied Intercultural Communications at Humboldt State University in Arcata, Calif., and Arts Integration into the Curriculum through Lesley University.

    *ani*

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 2 2023

    3:00 PM - Sunday - Brooks Room

    Ever wonder what you would do in the case of a natural disaster?

    This is an in-person program.

    Oregon and the Pacific Northwest are famous for diverse landscapes -- from rugged coastlines, lush forests, snow covered mountains, and arid high deserts. But these landscapes have been shaped by violent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Could geologic events like this occur again in the future? And what can we do to prepare for natural hazards like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions?

    In this presentation, geologist Daniele McKay will explore why these events occur in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. We will look at examples of what future earthquakes and volcanic activity might look like here in central Oregon, and how we can prepare for these events.

    Dr. Daniele McKay is an adjunct instructor in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Oregon. She lives in Bend, Oregon and teaches online geology courses throughout the academic year, and field courses in central Oregon during the summer. Her research background is in physical volcanology with a focus on recent mafic eruptions in the central Oregon Cascades. She is also interested in how societies prepare for and respond to natural disasters, especially volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. She has worked with Deschutes County, the Oregon Office of Emergency Management, Oregon Partnership for Disaster Resilience, and the Red Cross on natural hazard preparedness and mitigation in central Oregon.*ani*

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 3 2023

    9:30 AM - Monday - Brooks Room

    Stories, songs, rhymes, crafts to develop early literacy skills.  3-5 yrs.

    This is an in-person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Early literacy skills to get your child ready to learn to read are the focus of these storytimes.  You and your child will hear great stories while also becoming more familiar with letter sounds, rhyming, vocabulary, and print.  Plus there will be directions to follow, which will help prepare for kindergarten.  30 min.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 3 2023

    10:00 AM - Monday - Lobby Tutor Room

    Walk-in social services assistance that connects you with resources.This is an in‐person program. Masks are optional at all in-person library events.

    Connect and get help with housing, medical, mental health, veterans services, social security resources, and more. Thrive Central Oregon staff help you navigate the complex forms, websites, and waitlists needed to access these resources. All appointments are first come first served and last for 30 minutes. For more information visit: www.thrivecentraloregon.org.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 4 2023

    1:30 PM - Tuesday - Meyer Classroom

    Enjoy the focus of a quiet space with the benefit of others' company.

    This is an in-person program.

    Bring personal work, read a book, or answer emails. Come when you can, leave when you want.

    Free, open network WiFi available.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 4 2023

    2:00 PM - Tuesday - Second Floor

    Get help with your legal information questions.


    This is an in‐person program. Masks are recommended at all in‐person library events.

    Deschutes Public Library hosts the law library for Deschutes County and law library staff will be available at Downtown Bend Library on Tuesdays from 2-5pm to assist with legal information questions.

    Law Library Office Hours provides research training, legal reference assistance, and access to a variety of legal information resources. We can help identify relevant legal research materials, provide instruction on effective use of resources including find court documents in OJCIN, and provide referrals to appropriate agencies or organizations.

    Library staff may not engage in the practice of law, and are prohibited from interpreting legal materials or giving legal advice.

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

  • Apr 4 2023

    6:00 PM - Tuesday - Brooks Room * Registration Required

    An overview of Oregon's expungement process.You can attend this program online or in person. To take part online, use the "Register for online access" link above. Face coverings are optional at all in-person library events.

    Lawyers from Legal Aid Services of Central Oregon talk about current Oregon expungement law. This is a general workshop, presenters are unable to answer questions about specific cases.

    Free, registration is requested but not required.

    Legal Aid Services of Oregon (LASO) is a statewide non-profit organization that provides access to legal help for people to protect their livelihoods, their health, and their families. LASO’s mission is to achieve justice for the low-income communities of Oregon by providing a full range of the highest quality civil legal services.*hy*

    Add to Calendar | Find Downtown Bend Public Library

Page Last Modified Wednesday, March 8, 2023


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